Allison 1000 problems!

[34XB]

We have a Workhorse W22 with 8.1 with Allison 1000 transmission. We have 42,500 miles on it. The transmission will not pull forward but only in reverse. We have had motorhome towed to Allison Service Center. They have checked all the electronic and fault codes. It tells them it has improper gear ratio. The fluid looks clean but has a bad smell to it with a few clutch fibers. They now tell us that transmission must be replaced as they cannot repair it. The cost for a remanfactured Allison 1000 with labor is over $4000.00. We had just climbed up and down a long hill to a state park before it went out. I was driving down the hill with RV manualy in 2 or 3rd gear before hooking up tow car. I did feel transmission slightly jerk as was pulling over to hook up car. It was after hookup it would not pull. The other history is RV I did get engine hot at about 30,000 miles when coolant mix was too much water and not enough antifreeze while traveling thru the Rockies. It has performed perfect since then. Did foul a plug and replaced plug wires at that time.

Did I do something to cause this? Is it wrong to manualy downshift (after breaking) when coming down long grades to save over using breaks? How can I prevent this in the future?

[Tom N]

Sorry to hear about your problem. The Allison computer will not let you damage the transmission with the shifter.

Did you ask Allison these questions??

I would ask Allison if they would pick up some of these repair costs. Go to the regional Allison rep or a level or two above the service center.

Here is a new Allison 1000MH for $2450 but that doesn't seem to save you much. Allison may be giving you a discount on their $4000 estimate.

1000 SERIES ALLISON TRANS



Keep us post on any progress. We all have an Allison and rarely hear of a failure.

Good luck.

-Tom

[Ray,IN]

I too am sorry to hear of your trouble. One thing you might want to investigate after getting a new tranny is weights. Is you coach rated to tow the weight your towed vehicle? To determine this you must know the actual weight of your coach first.
If your engine got too hot, it's likely the tranny did too.

[CoastieSCPO]

34XB
Last year, on our trip to Florida, the Allison 1000 tranny on my W-20 failed. Like you, it would only drive in reverse, but the fluid was burnt. I had it towed to the Detroit Allison dealer in Ocala, Fl where they replaced it with a Retran. They would not take the old one apart but said that C-1 clutch failed and first gear was shot. During our trip, I downshifted quite a bit in an effort to not overtax the brakes but I really do not know why the transmission failed.

Insofar as replacement cost are concerned and as a point of reference for you, my total bill for the retran and 4 gallons of Castrol syntec fluid was $3322.00, tax included. I was fortunate that my extended warranty company paid about 75 % of the bill. We were out of warranty on the original unit, and I spoke to the Allison regional service manager but was not offered any relief. Got the extended warranty, so I have no complaints and now there is syntec in the tranny instead of dino fluid. Good luck!

Bob